To:THE BUREAU OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE ABROAD

Published:First published in 1930 inLenin Miscellany XIII.

      Sent from Helsingfors to Stockholm.

      Printed from the original.Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      Progress Publishers,[1976],

      Moscow,Volume 35,

      pages318-324.Translated:Andrew RothsteinTranscription\Markup:R. CymbalaPublic Domain:Lenin Internet Archive.You may freely copy, distribute,
	display and perform this work, as well as make derivative and
	commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet
	Archive” as your source.•README

August17(30), 1917

DearFriends,

Withgreat difficulty, after long weeks of forced
interruption, it seems as though we are successfully resuming our
correspondence. Of course, to make this completely
successful you will have to go to a lot of pains and effort to organise
it at your end.

Theshameful campaign of slander launched by the
bourgeoisie about the alleged espionage, or connection
therewith, of Hanecki, Kollontai and many others is, of course,
a scoundrelly cover for the crusade against the
internationalists on the part of our bold “republicans”, who want to
“compare favourably” with tsarism in their slander–
mongering.

(1)Ihave read somewhere in the Russian papers that
Hanecki and Radek have been publishing a
denial.[4]I don’t
know whether this is true. But it is essential. The first thing
to do is for Radek to write to Paris and get the minutes of
the last Paris trial of himself (by various factions of the
R.S.D.L.P.). Lunacharsky, denouncing these base
slanderers, long ago described this trial inNovaya
Zhizn.[5]But
that is not enough. Someone should try to get the minutes
or at least the full sentence of the court, and, if it cannot be
printed, take several typed copies and send them here. If it
is impossible to gel the minutes or the sentence, it would
be desirable to procure at least a written account of the trial
by one of the Parisians who look part in it, and to publish
at least a small pamphlet in Russian (there is a Russian
printing-press in Christiania), in order to give a documentaryrefutation of these disgusting slanders. It will be possible
to send us at least some copies of the pamphlet, and extracts
from it should appear inArbeiterpolitik, Politiken, Demain,
etc.

(2)Itis equally essential that Hanecki should give a
documentary refutation of the slanderers, by publishing as rapidly
as possible the financial accounts of his trading and his
“business deals” with Sumenson (who is this lady? It’s the
first time I have heard of her!) and with Kozlovsky (it is
desirable that the accounts should be audited and signed by
a Swedish notary or Swedish socialists, several of them,
members of Parliament). It is also necessary to publish the text
of the telegrams (there has already been something in the
Russian papers, inRusskaya Volya, Bez Lishnikh
Slov[6]and others, but probably not in full), and to analyse and
explain each.

Wemust fight against this shameful Dreyfus campaign,
against this slandering, by publishing the pamphlet, and as
quickly as possible, not sparing toil, trouble or money,
in order to brand the slanderers and, as far as possible, to
help those who have been arrested on this base and
slanderous charge.

(3)Howare the financial affairs of the Bureau Abroad,
which was appointed by our Central Committee? After the
July persecutions it is clear that our C.C. cannot help (I
think so at any rate). Write whether you have succeeded in
collecting anything through the Swedish Left, and will
the Bureau manage to exist? What about theBulletin? How
many issues have been published, and in what
languages?[7]Has Guilbeaux bad all the issues? Have you a file ofDemain?Was theBulletinsent to America, North and South? Write
about all this in as much detail as yon can.

(4)Bythe way. I don’t remember who informed us, but it
seems that after Grimm, and independently of him, Moor
appeared in Stockholm. That the scoundrel Grimm, as a
Kautskian “Centrist”, proved capable of a scoundrelly
understanding with “his” minister does not surprise me:
anyone who does not break resolutely with the social–
chauvinists always risks falling into this scoundrelly situation.
But what kind of man is Moor? Has it been fully and
absolutely proved that he is an honest man? That he never had,and has not now, any direct or indirect dealings with
the German social-imperialists? If it is true that Moor
is in Stockholm, and if you know him, I would very, very
much ask you, earnestly ask you, insistently ask you to
lake every step to check this up in the most strict and the
most documented fashion. There is not, or rather, should
not he, any room even for a shadow of suspicion, reproach,
rumour, etc. I very much regret that the “Zimmerwald
Commission” did not condemn Grimm more
severely![8]It should have been done more severely!

(5)Ihave been, and remain, unquestionably against
participation in the Stockholm
Conference.[9]I must observe
that I am writing all this letter personally, as from myself,
since I have had no chance either to ask the C.C. or even
communicate with it. Therefore, in replying to me with
particular detail, append to your letter your official,
detailed, business-like, documentary report (of the whole
Bureau) to the Central Committee, and I will send it on.

So,I am absolutely against participating in the Stockholm
Conference. I consider Kamenev’s
statement[10](have you
seenNovaya Zhizn? you ought to subscribe to it) the height
of stupidity, if not of baseness, and have already written
about this to the Central Committee and for the press.
Luckily Kamenev was speaking only for himself, and was
disavowed by another Bolshevik.

Iconsider participation in the Stockholm Conference, or
in any other, with the Ministers (and scoundrels) Chernov,
Tsereteli, Skobelev and their parties, to be direct betrayal,
and will state this opinion in the press against all and
sundry. If in the “Zimmerwald Commission” (judging by the
report of the social-chauvinist Rozanov) it proved possible
almost to reject Stockholm, or to half-reject it, this is very
good. But “almost” and “half” are of no use at all, and
all this “half”-social-chauvinist Zimmerwald Commission,
which depends on the Italians and the Ledebourites, who
desire “unity” with the social-chauvinists, is a most harmful
institution.

(6)Weare making the very greatest and unforgivable
mistake in delaying or postponing the convening of a
conference of the Left to found a Third International. It is
just now, when Zimmerwald is so shamefully wavering orobliged to be inactive, just nowwhiletherestillis in Russia
a legal (almost legal) internationalist party with more than
200,000 (240,000)
members[1](which does not exist anywhere
else in the world in wartime), it is just now that we are in
duty bound to call a conference of the Left, and we shall
really be criminals if we arelatein doing so (the Bolshevik
Party in Russia is being driven more and more underground
day by day).

Moneyfor the conference will be found. It is possible
to issue several numbers of itsBulletin. There is a centre
for it in Stockholm. There is a French “foothold” (Demain)
and an English one (the “SocialistLabourParty” of
America; its delegate
Reinstein[2]was recently in Petrograd and
will probably be in Stockholm)—though by the wayin
additionto the S.L.P. (the “SocialistLabourParty” of
America) there is also an English foothold, Tom Mann in
Britain, the minorities within the British Socialist Party, the
Scottish socialists andThe Internationalin America.

Itwould be simply criminal to postpone now the calling
of a conference of the Left.

Itwould be immeasurably stupid to “wait” for a “large”
number of participants, and to be “embarrassed” by the fact
that at present there are “few”. For just now such a conference
will be amoralforce, independently of the number of
participants, while later it may behushed up.

TheBolsheviks, the P.S.D., the Dutch,Arbeiterpolitik,
Demain—there is already a sufficientnucleus. They will
certainly be joined, if energetic action is taken, by part of
the Danes (Trier and others, who have left the party of
the scoundrel Stauning), part of the Swedish Young (against
whomweare sinning, in notleadingthem, because theymust be led), some of the Bulgarians, the Lefts in Austria
(“Franz”[11]), some of the friends of Loriot in France, part
of the Lefts in Switzerland (Youth International) and in
Italy, and then the elements in the Anglo-American
movement which I have already mentioned.

Theresolutions of the conference of the Bolsheviks
(April 24–29), 1917) and of their congress (July 1917; see the
resolutions inNovaya
Zhizn),[12]the draft new programme
of the same Party—there is a sufficientideological basis(addingVorbote, Tribune, Arbeiterpolitikand others) to be
able to present the whole world with clear answers to the
questions raised by imperialism, and to accuse the
social-chauvinists and the Kautskians.

Sucha conference must be calledat once, itsprovisionalBureaumust be set up, and its manifesto and draft
resolutions printed in three languages for passing on to the parties.
I repeat once again: I am profoundly convinced that, if we
do not do thisnow, we shall make this work terribly
difficult for ourselves in the future, and will terribly facilitate
an “amnesty” for the traitors to socialism.

(7)Theministerialism of the Russian Menshevik-“
Zimmerwaldists” must be specially utilised to put an ultimatum
to Zimmerwald in general: either a break with the Brantings,
Huysmans and Co., or we walk out immediately. By the
way: isArbeiterpolitikmaking a campaign against Zetkin
and against the BraunschweigerVolksfreundfor the way
these scoundrels, pursuing their intrigues, have been
whitewashing and supporting the Russian Mensheviks, Chkheidze
and Co., who have proved ministerial swine, just like
Sembat, Renaudel, Thomas and Co.?

HasMehring, too, still not understood to this day the
utter baseness of Chkheidze, Tsereteli, Skobelev and Co.?

(8)Youmust get your letters sent on here—I hope to
receive immediatelyjustas detailed a letter as mine (
otherwise I do not agree to correspond)—and literature as well:
files from the middle of June, at the very least, ofArbeiterpolitik, Demain, Kampf(Duisburg),Weekly People(S.L.P.),Leipziger Volkszeitung, Neue Zeit, The Calland others.Spartacus,
the publications of Loriot and his friends,Avanti!,
etc., etc. As a beginning, you might at least send cuttings.

(9)Youshould send here, if possible every week, first,
articles for the provincial and Petrograd Party press (
reviews of the Left-wing movement abroad, facts, facts, facts);
secondly, leaflets (4–8--16 small pages) for publication as
booklets. Summaries offactsabout the collapse of the
International, the disgrace of the social-chauvinists, thedisgrace of the Kautskians, the growth of the movement
of the Left: at least 4 booklets on each of these subjects,
16–32 small pages each.Factsandfacts. There is a hope of
publishing this. Reply at once whether you can take it on.
When sending it on by our method (there can be no question
now of sending it legally) I think it isall the samewhich
language it is written in.

(10)Ihope you have the file ofPravda, and are subscribing
toNovaya Zhizn. If you have not receivedRabochy i Soldat(closed down),Proletarskoye Dyelo(Kronstadt) andSotsial-Demokrat(Moscow), write at once, and I will send them as
soon as the new method, being tested for the first time by
this letter, is organised satisfactorily.

P.S.August 18. I have just received Nos. 1, 2, 4 of the
new paperProletary, the Central
Organ[13]—of course, they
will soon close it down, f will try and send it to you. I am
sending Nos.1–7.

August20.I have still not succeeded in sending off my
letter, and probably won’t succeed for some time. So this
is becoming something like a diary instead of a letter! It
can’t be helped. You must have a lot of patience and
determination, if you want to communicate at all with
internationalists in the “most free” imperialist republic. Today I
have learned fromIzvestiathatNews of the Stockholm
Information Bureau of the Soviet of Workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputiesis being published weekly in Stockholm. Try to sendfilesof all Stockholm publications.We see nothing.

August25(September 7). It looks as though tomorrow it
will be possible to send this letter. Makeeveryeffort to
organise delivery from your end. Reply without failat
once, if only briefly, to the address (withinyourcountry)
which the comrade delivering this letter (or his friend)
communicates to you. He will also pass on a cipher; as an
experiment 1 am writing a few words in this cipher, and
please reply to them in the same
cipher.[3]

P.S.Write one more pamphlet, 16–32 small pages, about
the secret diplomatic treaties of Russia: brief, precise, facts,
facts. Such-and-such a treaty of such-and-such a dale, month,year, content so-and-so. A list of the treaties. A summary.
As brief and factual as possible. Reply whether you
undertake to do it, and when yon will send it.

Iconclude: for God’s sake, a conference of the Left
immediately, a bureau of the Left, a bulletin of the bureau, and
decide on asecondconference in 2 (1 1/2) months.

[1]Seventeendaily papers; 1,415,000 copies weekly altogether;
320,000 daily.—Lenin

[2]Ihave no idea what sort of a bird this is. According to the
press, he greeted the “Unity Congress” of the Mensheviks!! That means
he’s a suspect bird.—Lenin

[3]Afew lines are in cipher here.—Ed.

[4]PravdaNo. 88 for June 22 (July 5), 1917 published Hanecki’s
cable from Stockholm denying the slanderous statements made about him in
the newspaperDyen(Day). The same issue ofPravdaalso
contained a telegram signed by Bronski, Orlovsky and Radek affirming
Hanecki’s innocence.

[5]NovayaZhizn(New Life) (Petrograd,
1917–18)—Menshevik-orientateddaily, organ of a
group of Social-Democrats known as the “Internationalists”, which
included Menshevik supporters of Martov and various semi-Menshevik
intellectuals.

Referenceis to Lunacharsky’s letter to the editor published inNovaya ZhiznNo. 60, June 28 (July 11), 1917.

[6]BezLishnikh Slav(Without Wasting Words)—scurrilous weekly
paper published by the Black-Hundred leader Alexinsky in Petrograd in July
1917.

[7]Referenceis toRussische Korrespondenz “Prawda”(“Pravda”
Russian Bulletin), published by the R.S.D.L.P. Central Committee Bureau
Abroad in Stockholm in 1917. It was published in German; a French edition
also appeared.

[8]WhileRobert Grimm, Chairman of the International Socialist Commission
(I.S.C.), was in Russia in the spring of 1917, he ex changed secret
dispatches with the Swiss statesman Hoffmann concerning the German terms
for conclusion of a separate peace treaty between Germany and Russia. When
this became known, he was expelled from Russia. The investigation of the
case was entrusted to a special commission nominated by the I.S.C., which
declared Grimm’s actions contradictory to the principles of the Zimmerwald
movement. Grimm was removed from his post of Chairman of the I.S.C. and the
commission’s decision on the case was ratified by the Third Zimmerwald
Conference, held in Stockholm in September 1917.

[9]Referenceis to the International Socialist Conference, which was to
take place in Stockholm in the summer of 1917. The conference had been
proposed by social-chauvinists of the neutral countries.

[10]OnAugust 6 (19), 1917, at a meeting of the Central Executive
Committee, held to discuss preparations for the Stockholm Conference,
Kamenev spoke in favour of participation in the conference and revision of
the Bolsheviks’ decision on this question. The Bolshevik group in the
C.E.C. dissociated itself from Kamenev’s speech.

Leninsent the editor of the newspaperProletaryan open letter
called “Kamenev’s Speech in the C.E.C. on the Stockholm
Conference” (see present edition, Vol. 25, pp. 240–42).

[11]Referenceis to Franz Koritschoner. See Note 248.

[12]Referenceis to the resolutions passed at the Seventh (April)
Conference and the Sixth Congress of the R.S.D.L.P.(B.) (seeKPSS
v rezolyutsiyakh i resheniyakh syezdov, konferentsii i plenumov
Tseka, 7th ed., Part 1, 1954, pp. 335–53 and 372–89).

[13]Proletary(The Proletarian)—daily paper, central organ of the
Bolshevik Party; it appeared from August 13 (26) to August 24
(September 6), 1917 in place ofPravda, which had been banned by
the Provisional Government. Ten issues were published.